Page 49 of Met Your Mate

I see the moment Freya completely gives in to her instincts, but I'm too late to stop what happens next. My girl finally accepting her omega nature should be one of celebration, and yet, only carnage follows.

As usual, her mates are useless in protecting her.

Chapter Forty-One

FREYA

Everything I have been forced to suppress, every heightened instinct, every part of me that has been trained out for years comes barreling to the surface.

The stranger that stepped forward alongside Casey and my other mates broke the shackles holding my omega back from being everything that she could be. Notes of his hot fudge scent sprinkled with the cry of joy that rocketed through my brain from my omega when we locked similar bright blue eyes, broke the chains holding my omega back.

His bright blonde hair shines like a beacon in the dreary forest, making it hard to peel my gaze away from the man I don't know. I can guess he's one of Kate's mates, but why does it feel like he's something to me too?

It's the clear degrading demand from Ken for my mates to kneel and the shifting of the two enforcers with guns aimed at my guys that makes every semblance of control snap.

First comes the roaring wind ripping leaves from their branches. The tone shifts in conversations, telling a story beyond the meaning of their words. Weight shifting beside and behind me, rearranging the air cooling my wet skin.

My focus shifts, expands, and narrows. One sense after the other picking up on the cues of danger surrounding us.

Ken's boot squelches beside my right ankle. Then I tune into the pumping of his blood. My nightmare's very essence roars through his wrist and arteries, inches from my head. Mud shifts as his body weight does, making me sink to the side ever so slightly.

My teeth vibrate, knowing what I plan to do before it's a conscious thought. Shifting my weight for balance and taking one final deep breath to loosen my tense muscles, I relax my body to move as fast as a dainty, frail, weak omega can.

Then Casey's subtle gasp of breath reaches my sensitive ears, followed by the crisp image of rain dripping from his dirty blonde hair.

He knows.

I strike.

My thin body twists toward the gun and leans back. My bony arms snatch Ken's nearest forearm, dragging the gun down to aim at the ground. Then I'm ripping into his flesh.

Blood spurts into the back of my throat, making my savage omega hum with appreciation and disgust. Digging deeper, I sink into the ringing and throbbing in my ears, and twist my head, ripping his mess of vital veins from his wrist.

The monster who has haunted my life for years crumples to the ground, dragging his mangled arm with him.

My vision darkens and sparks with white as I watch the earth wrap around his abusive frame. The rain does nothing to rinse the mud seeping into his bleeding wrist. Nor does it cool the heated shower of blood on my face and chest.

I watch and enjoy the life draining from my captor until I, too, am lying on the soaking forest floor. My ears ring and ring as I prepare myself for the comfort of silence.

My eyes flutter closed, and every instinct that exploded from me moments or hours before fades away into the blanket of nothingness.

Chapter Forty-Two

RONAN

If this were any other situation where another alpha was staring at my omega like she was his salvation, I might rip his throat out. I have more pressing concerns than Beckett right now, and it comes in many fucking forms.

Obviously, the gun digging into the back of Freya's head is the main one. Next is figuring out how to keep my entire pack alive, especially now that we're right in the center of a damn showdown.

I'm a teacher for fuck’s sake. I am absolutely not cut out for weapons flying about and threats being thrown every which way.

What I can do, though, is use my brain to understand the look on Freya's pale face. Her platinum locks stick to the skin of her arms all the way past her elbows, but her beautiful hair doesn't hide the shift of her weight.

A couple yards away and completely tuned in on my omega, I watch her jaw clench and her pupils shrink. My alpha side feels like it's pacing back and forth, nudging her towards feral territory with subtle thumps down the mating bond.

Even being smart enough to decipher the instinctual state of my omega doesn't help me stop what happens next. Casey must notice what I've already seen, and it's like his gasp triggers the string of events.

Everything happens so fast.

---